U.K. High Court Ruling in Merck Case Raises Trademark Questions

摘要

The U.K. High Court's recent ruling that the U.S.-based pharmaceutical firm Merck Sharpe & Dohme Corp.'s online use of "Merck" infringed trademark rights of Germany's Merck KGaA in the U.K. raised "some important questions" for trademark owners, according to attorneys interviewed by Bloomberg BNA. Ending three years of litigation over the territorial use of the "Merck" brand name, the English High Court Jan. 15 ruled that Kenilworth, N.J.-based Merck & Co., Inc. (Merck US) breached a co-existence agreement with Darmstadt, Germany-based Merck KGaA (Merck Germany) (Merck KGaA v. Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp [2016] EWHC 49 (Pat), EWHC, No: HC 13 B00955, 15/1/16). Merck & Co. is known as MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme) outside the U.S. and Canada.